£1bn payout target still on, says Legal & General FD

Legal & General is
firmly on track today to give its investors a bumper payment of at least £1bn
its FD predicts.

L&G’s FD Andrew Palmer toldThe Times that the final
size of the payout would not be determined until July, but did not rule out the
possibility of an even higher return: ‘My gut instinct is for that amount. But
if it turns out to be more than £1bn, it is more than £1bn.’

The news comes as the corporate nears the conclusion of its capital review
and benefits from last year’s pension A-Day reforms.

As with the rest of the insurance community, L&G prospered from the
government’s ‘A-day’ pensions changes which came into effect in April last year,
affording consumers a wider range of pension investments. The corporate believed
that the A-Day effect was set to continue this year, The Times
reported.

Palmer added that L&G would be making every effort to retain its current
‘AA’ credit rating because of its worth as a guarantee of credit strength and
the added bonus it gave in reducing the cost of raising capital.